


Rough Edges

by DarkStarlight



Category: Final Fantasy X, Fullmetal Alchemist
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, M/M, Off-Screen Major Character Death, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-07-14
Updated: 2015-01-31
Packaged: 2017-12-20 04:29:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/882949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkStarlight/pseuds/DarkStarlight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Ocean’s tide is strong and ever changing, mixing the colors of life and the world around it within its colors. A chance meeting after such loss and despair may be enough to pull the sun from being swallowed up by the depths of the ocean and embark life upon the soul buried there.</p>
<p>Disclaimer: I neither own nor make any money from writing this story; it is purely for entertainment and my own personal amusement purpose. Fullmetal Alchemist and its characters belong to Arakawa-sama and Final Fantasy X and its characters belong to Square Enix or Square Soft whatever they’re calling themselves presently.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1: Ocean's Tide

Part One: Ocean’s Tide

_-An ocean's tide can be swift and destructive or slow and soothing depending on the energy moving through its waters._

A thread of gold amongst the eerie night lit by only the pale moon and what stars shone through the clouds in the sky. Such gold was tied back in a braid that the wind took to whipping about but didn't seem to bother the young man standing at the cliffs edge with golden eyes dulled from sorrow or weariness it was hard to tell in the night. The wind below created choppy waves along the ocean that hit the cliff side but the spray didn't reach the top where he stood. The nightly lights caught onto the metal of the right hand left ungloved though most of the rest of the arm was covered by a black sleeve to a black shirt that was no less of a plaything of the wind. Black pants and boots seemed immobile as they fit the figure snugly.

As the full moon finally won its' battle with the clouds pale light cast along the land and water casting a reflection back to the figure and seeming to bleach the color from his tan skin. The gold of his hair and eyes seemed to dim as well from the pale light turning gold threads a silver-like color and letting light reach golden eyes gazing unseeingly out at the water. It was somewhat calming in a surreal way that the sounds of the ocean and the wind and the darkness that was only illuminated by the pale light of the moon could stir thoughts he would rather leave buried deep inside.

All the same, he still returned each night to stand upon the cliff's edge and gaze at the night around him and the ocean below. He didn't think of jumping for his instincts would probably end up saving his life and he wasn't in the mood to feel more pain than the deep wound of grief from what had brought him to leave his home to begin with. No matter how much he longed to escape his memories he could not and he was sort of torturing himself by standing outside at night to bathe in pale light. 

The house in which he stayed with his brother and his soon to be sister-in-law was atop a hill a hundred or so paces away. He was usually too tired by the time dawn came around to notice and too trapped in nightmares and thoughts of the past to take notice when he walked out of the house at the first signs of the approaching night. He longed to feel numb, but hollowness and grief and unbearable pain was all he ever felt, never the numbness he longed for. Drinking reminded him of the one that he lost that shattered his heart into the jagged pieces they lay in now. The moon in all its' paleness reminded him of the pale skin of his dead lover, husband, the one to finally give him something to live for after the stone and getting his brothers' body back.

The dark of night reminded him of midnight blue eyes that were almost black when they made love or the black of his hair or blue of the uniform he always wore. It never failed, every night he came to stand at the cliffs edge his mind drifted through all the memories of the years past. He wasn't more than twenty-four years old, had finally grown to an average height of 5'6" and knew what it was to lose everything at least a few times. For a while he'd lost his brother, though his soul was bound to a suit of armor his body was lost and on lonely nights when it seemed impossible to go on he'd longed to feel the warmth of another just as some form of comfort. His father had gone and left when he was still a small child and upon his return years later he was lost to them completely shortly thereafter. Their mother was someone they lost and could never replace even though they were foolish enough to try and bring her back.

Chaos, his life had been chaotic at best and now in this peaceful country that was not his home, in this place on the other side of the world from where his home once was it was chaotic in his mind, in his dreams, inside. Where his heart used to be was nothing but a gaping black hole that nothing could fill and nothing could mend. It was eating him alive from the inside and he would have let it kill him if not for his brother. He ate, slept, showered, and did the other mundane things to keep his body alive because he couldn't leave Al, he couldn't do that to his only family after what they had just lost that brought them here.

The departure of his father, the heartbreak that in turn cast his mother to an early grave, the training he and his brother underwent seemed so far away but so vivid at the same time. The attempt and failure of trying to resurrect their mother was a nightmare he would never forget. The loss of his leg and Al's body, the giving up of his right arm to bind his brothers' soul to a suit of armor so that he didn't lose him entirely. Years of searching for the stone, for a way to right their wrongs, to get their bodies back.

Long, rough, eye opening years on the road where he had to learn the harshness of the world even though he strove to always look ahead, to look to their goal and focus on that alone. Al was the one to remind him of the things worth fighting for, his presence alone was enough to push him through and keep him going. As he grew up and started to notice different things about himself and about others, he started to respect and even developed a crush on his commanding officer. After distance and time that crush became so much more and he was the one to instigate it, to take a leap of faith and hope that his feelings were returned. 

When they were he truly was the happiest he'd ever been before that time. He didn't mind that they were discreet or that they had to continue acting as though nothing had taken place, he was a private person anyway and he wasn't sure he was ready to really tell anyone yet to begin with. He enjoyed the time he spent with him, could truly smile and laugh and was more open and trusting than he knew he could be with anyone that wasn't his brother. He didn't tell Al everything, he kept the darker truths to himself wanting his little brother to remain as innocent as he could, but he didn't have to worry about revealing the darker secrets he kept to his lover. They both had haunted pasts and regrets and dark secrets and they trusted one another and loved one another, could confide in each other and it was truly uplifting to finally have someone that he could turn to and lean on that felt as though he were old enough for him to do the same.

He could still remember the first time they'd had sex together and how afterwards he truly felt as though he did belong to someone and that someone was truly his to have. It was empowering and humbling, his feelings only continued to grow, and that made it all that much harder to leave the comfort and safety he felt with him. However, when he left, he only fought that much harder because he finally had something worth fighting for that didn't seem out of reach. When he'd felt helpless, despaired, hopeless and like he was at the end of his rope he would return to his side and everything seemed like it would be all right again.

He finally found something that could stabilize him, something that was worth all the hell he'd already faced and worth whatever hell he had to face in the days after that. The smug bastard that was his commanding officer saved him from falling into a black hole in ways that not even Al's presence could. Getting Al's body back, giving Al the chance to live his own life and be happy was worth more than his own life but having something that was his own, a way for him to have happiness pushed him through those last few years. 

When they rose against the corrupt military, rose to fight against 'Father' and stop the humunculus he finally felt like all his goals were in reach if he could manage to survive. Mustang was badly wounded and he'd never been more afraid in his entire life, and his own father sacrificed himself to give him and Al their bodies back. Once the fight was over and the scars healed and he and Al got their bodies back to working shape again they went back home for a while but the entire time Ed had felt as though he were leaving home. He spent time in Resembool but ended up going back to Central. He resigned from the military and took a job as an alchemy researcher at a civilian lab.

He was sixteen when things between him and Roy started and eighteen when he finally returned to Central. Though Ed was legally an adult they still kept things discreet, Mustang was still part of the military after all. However, this time around, they had the entire package, they spent all the time they could with each other, told their friends and family that they were together. Ed felt a little guilty because Winry had looked so heartbroken by the announcement but after a few months, she picked up the pieces as stubbornly as ever and moved on. 

If he was entirely honest he would have loved her, would have been happy with her and ended up marrying her but Roy had stolen his heart beforehand and he never looked back. He never did pay attention to girls and now that he'd been with Roy, he could honestly say he never wanted that to end or change. Regardless, it did anyway and without giving him a choice on the matter at all. 

A few years went by and they were the happiest and most peaceful years Ed ever had. Before he knew it Winry was getting married to Havoc and expecting a child, he was the best man at the wedding and named the godfather. Then Al was engage to that princess from Xing. Winry had her wedding in Central and stayed there because that was where Havoc worked and because she could boost sales on her automail there. Al returned to Central after spending two years traveling, he returned with his fiancé, and they stayed. Everything was well and everyone was happy. 

It wasn't long before Roy ended up talking everyone into leaving Amestrius for a while, wasn't long before Ed found himself a married man. He never thought he would ever be that happy in his life, to be married, to vow to forever be at someone's side. He enjoyed the stability, the feeling of having a home, having his family and friends at his side, he was happy and he finally had the chance to enjoy that happiness and enjoy being in love.

Ed clenched his fists at his side and shivered from the cold that settled inside him as he gazed up at the moon through tear glazed eyes that he was too stubborn to let fall. One day, just one day, one moment changed everything and ripped all of that away from him. The only ones to make it out of Amestrius alive were Ed, Al, and Al's fiancé. She had grown in all this time, was now a strong, capable, determined young woman, more so after what had happened.

Somehow, 'Father' rose again and his hatred and thirst for revenge cost them everything and nearly their own lives. Ed didn't feel alive; he hardly felt anything that was worth living for only the pain, heavy, suffocating grief, loneliness, and the heartache were reminders that he was alive. He didn't taste the food he ate or the things he drank. He'd even started drinking milk because he truly couldn't taste it anymore and that had thoroughly scared Al. They didn't know about his return until the earthquakes and then the Xingneese princess had come running and telling all of them that they had to go that 'Father' had returned. 

That time they were given was why the three of them were alive, but it wasn't enough time, never enough time. Ed couldn't blame her; Al was alive still because of her so he couldn't bring himself to blame her. Instead, he had cast the blame on himself. _If only I had noticed it sooner, if only I had stuck around and made sure the old man had killed him, if only I had blown the place up and torn up the circle and the arrays . . ._ But he had destroyed the arrays and Roy had blown the place apart and Al was there when their old man killed the bastard, it was him and Mustang that had carried Al to the surface after they finished off the humunculi.

Memories flashed across his mind, the screams, that red light, the faces of all those he cared for, the fear he'd felt for everyone and how helpless he'd felt. The light was closing in on them, was right behind them and it didn't look like they'd make it and then Roy have shoved him forward and out of the array. Ed had turned to try to cling to Roy, to pull him with him, to do anything other than having to watch him disappear. As he pushed himself to his hands and knees and looked up, his eyesight blurred with tears because his subconscious knew what his mind was unable to accept.

He had stupidly reached out for Roy just as the light flared, grabbed his hand, tried to pull him out of the array but the light swept over him and took his arm from him yet again. The scream couldn't be bit down or held back because it wasn't the pain of losing his arm; it was the pain of losing Roy that had made him unable to stop the scream from being ripped from his throat. He had sat there numb staring at the spot where Roy used to be staring at where his eyes were boring into his own, apologetic, heartbroken, torn, yet still with unreserved love and it hurt and left him in a state of shocked horror. 

Al later told him that it was Havoc and a still pregnant Winry that had shoved him and his fiancé out of the array and that Ed had sat there like that screaming Roy's name until his voice was hoarse and he passed out from the shock or the blood loss. Mai managed to at least close off what was left of his arm so that he wouldn't bleed to death and together the two got Ed to Xing so that he could be treated and have a new arm fitted to him. They had automail in Xing seeing as replacing lost limbs was beyond the reaches of even their alchemy.

It was good automail but nothing like Winry's. Once he was healed Ed couldn't handle being in Xinghan, in a place where everyone had dark hair and pale skin. He met with Roy's relatives, told them what happened and then left refusing to stay even though Roy's mother had begged them to stay. Al, being the gentle and kind person he was wrote down their phone number and address and promised to keep in touch and let them know that they were all right. Not even Mai and Al wanted to stay there, it was too much, too many reminders, too much.

They reached this place at night, the moon and the ocean had called to Ed, and they stayed. Ed hardly talked anymore, ate only to keep Al appeased and refused to go to town. He slept most of the day away now since he spent all night outside staring at the sky or the ocean. The winters were nothing like the cold winters in Central, they were chilly at best. He had developed a routine in the year and seven months that had passed since they arrived in this small country town. He showered, ate, sat in the living room lost to his own thoughts, ate again and then went outside when night fell. He returned at dawn, slept, and repeated the process, two meals a day was the best he could do seeing as how he slept the morning away and woke an hour after lunch.

At first sleep was rare for him, he was always haunted with all the nightmares of his past and that day when Amestrius was completely obliterated. Al had taken him to a doctor who gave him sleeping pills strong enough to force him into a dreamless sleep so that he could rest. Al persisted to try to talk Ed into going into town everyday and accompanying him and Mai into town when they went to town once a week to buy food and other necessities and accommodations for the house.

When he was stuck in his 'if only' faze Al had gotten fed up with him and they had an argument and Al had won and engraved it in his mind that it wasn't his fault and there was nothing any of them could have done. It was really the despair and the raw emotions and grief that showed in Al's voice, his eyes, and his expression, the tears he shed that made Ed finally give in and believe him. 

Al had Mai to help him move on and even though they were brothers' it just wasn't enough for Ed to move on as well. He felt too hollow, like he was the walking dead, more completely alone than ever before. He was falling into that hole a bit at a time. While he kept his body alive, everything else was already dead within him. _Did mom feel this way when dad left?_ He admired her for that, for continuing on when she felt the way he did now, but she also had two kids to continue on for and Ed was finding it harder and harder to keep living with only Al to keep him going.

"Hey man, you're not gonna jump are you?"

Ed whirled around at the sound of an unknown voice, unlike what he usually would have done however, he kept his hands at his sides instead of raised and ready to fight or be attacked. It wasn't worth fighting for, whoever this person was, whatever they wanted he didn't care, it wasn't worth fighting it anyway. He blinked a few times and furiously wiped the tears that had fallen down his cheeks without him realizing it. Then he truly looked at the stranger that had broken through his thoughts. 

He stood a few inches taller than he did and was a few feet away, watching him curiously and with some worry in his expression. He had startling blue eyes; they were like rare gems, a crystalline blue that had a cerulean tint to them as well. Even in the pale light of the moon, Ed could tell he was both tan and had blond hair. Athletic build, looked as though he'd led a relatively cheerful life even though he did hold himself like a fighter. There was an easy confidence to him as well and wore mostly yellow compared to his all black. A yellow shirt, black leather pants, yellow, leather boots.

Ed was too startled by this stranger’s sudden appearance and his question breaking through his thoughts to manage a reply. The other young man didn't seem fazed by his lack of answering. He crossed his arms over his chest and gazed up at the moon. 

"It's a nice night out, kinda windy, but hell its' always windy here," he let out a chuckle that made Ed's lip twitch with the urge to smile but he didn't.

He was still too wrapped up in the past and everything he'd lost to smile or laugh and this man made him want to talk but he still held his tongue stubbornly. It may have stemmed from sheer curiosity because of this random person’s audacity to approach him so casually, but silence was he constant companion as of late. Silence prevented him from acknowledging that which he held close and refused to let go of. The cheerful stranger just continued talking while he looked up at the moon.

"Most people would find the night too full of shadows to ever enjoy the peace it grants. The water helps too; I've always loved the water. Probably why I ended up just staying here when I came across this town."

Therefore, he was a traveler, which explained the confidence and why he'd need to know how to fight even though he lived in this town. He wasn't from this town. _Who is this person, why'd he show up and start talking to me all of a sudden? Had he been watching me, how long had he been watching me? Did he spend nights on end watching me or something and just now decide to come up and start talking to me and pulling me away from my thoughts?_

"I was just walking around trying to clear my mind so don't give me that suspicious look. I was thinking you were gonna jump or something."

_Okay, that answers that but it doesn't mean I'm going to trust you right off the bat or anything._

Ed still didn't want to say anything to the person and he tensed when he turned and faced him. There was a smile on his face as he said, "Names' Tidus by the way."

Ed nodded but still kept silent, it was a small town and if this ‘Tidus’ really lived here then he would know his name or could ask around and figure it out. For some reason though, this Tidus guys' presence was actually starting to ease the ache inside him just by being there. It unnerved and scared Ed a little bit that just meeting this person was affecting him, he wasn't ready to have someone else in his life, and he wanted Roy. He would rather continue acting out of a character for a while and stew in coming to terms with how very much they’d lost that fateful day. It was one thing to be ripped away from all you’ve ever known and quite another to have it all savagely ripped away with no chance of any of it returning. 

Maybe if this person proved trustworthy he might consider being friends with him or something, he rather liked how this other man seemed laid back and cheerful. It was a contrast to how he felt and it was nice to have someone around him. This was definitely a contrast to how he’s felt since they staggered their way to this country, sometimes he could picture Roy reminding him that his wallowing in self-pity was never going to accomplish anything. Even while he kept turning back to his thoughts and imagined conversations the cheerful Tidus just continued speaking as though Edward was paying attention.

"Here I thought Al was just making you up; never see you around town or outside during the day or anything."

Tidus motioned somewhere further down the road in the direction behind Ed, "I live in the house up the road, more like a shed really but its' by the ocean so it’s cool."

Tidus shrugged and still didn't seem fazed by Ed's silence, "There's no way the two of you aren't related now that I've seen you though. He talks about you and is worried about you, but I get the feeling that's his nature or something, he seems to worry about a lot of things."

Ed snorted which brought a laugh from Tidus that resulted in stirring some warmth through Ed's skin at the sound and seemed to ease that ache inside him a little more. 

"Even though you two look alike you do look like a walking dead guy though, no offense."

Ed managed a glare that just made Tidus smirk at him and then turned back to regard night sky and the ocean, "If you don't mind the company I'd volunteer to sit out here with you for a while, it's nice having company when the darkness starts to creep into your head."

Ed shrugged but said nothing, he agreed with what the person was saying. It was nice to have company on dark nights when your only companions happen to be nightmares and haunting memories. They both sat down a good space apart and enjoyed the rest of the night in comfortable silence thinking and enjoying the comfort of having someone there to help ease the pain from the ever-present shadows lurking behind blue and golden eyes. 

Just maybe, Ed would look to the ocean and the stars at night and see the beauty and light in them instead of the darkness that surrounded them. Eventually, he was bound to find his way back to himself and that spark of life he’d had before . . .


	2. Making Waves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I neither own nor make any money from writing this story; it is purely for entertainment. Fullmetal Alchemist and its characters belong to Arakawa-sama and Final Fantasy X and its characters belong to Square Enix or Square Soft whatever they’re calling themselves presently.
> 
> Summary: Alphonse is hopeful that something will change, if Ed doesn't want to snap out of his self-imposed solitude and silence then Al will just have to remind him that he still has people who care about him.

# Making Waves

_“Give sorrow words; the grief that does not speak knits up the o-er wrought heart and bids it break.”_

**-William Shakespeare, Macbeth**

This song of waves and wind was a lullaby for him, one that started to embark him on a journey into the past only to ensnare him in the memories and nightmares of when those happier times were taken away. Each and every night he found himself standing along that cliff's edge wanting to leap off into the depths of the ocean only to fear doing so because of how close it would bring him to seeing the man's face he most wished to see. The color of either the sky above or the ocean below would forever remind him of the pale skin, obsidian eyed, raven-haired man he'd sworn to spend the rest of his life with. However, fate had other plans, being the cruel mistress that she was, the ever endangered; flying by the seat of his pants, child that the gate had tormented most of his life was left to live past the man who was so cautious he could be labeled paranoid. 

According to his brother his sun had gone out, how ironic that his brother would chose to use the same words the two most important people in his life other than Al had used to describe him. He himself often referred to his actions as the same as the some idiot with wings made of wax that had flown too close to the sun causing his wings to melt and the idiot to plummet to his death. He had done that more than enough to have learned his lesson, yet like a fool he continued to do it. He'd let himself fall for the man that had aggravated him for most of his youth, let himself believe he could be happy for the rest of his life, and now all of that was ripped away from him. So what was the real reason he never leapt off the cliff's edge to his death? He almost wanted to laugh sardonically at himself, his life was never his to gamble with and cowardice was never his style. He’d always thought suicide was the coward’s way out. Regardless of how tempted he may feel by the idea, he could never go so far as to consciously end his own life. Knowing his luck, he wouldn’t even die if he did jump anyway.

There was also the curious nature he had, that person from yesterday made him curious as to what motivated him to try and talk some stranger off the edge. He had to be more cynical from all those years spent around Roy or something with all the suspicions he'd asked himself when he first met the guy. Now he actually missed his company, like a dog that is fed once and wants to stick around the person that fed them. Could he even get addicted to a person's presence? Yes, that was a stupid question. How much did he miss Roy, when he slept, when he thought about things, when he wanted to have a conversation with someone, when the lonely nights crawled in and pushed him to stand out here in the wind at the edge of a cliff he felt nothing but aching withdrawals for the man. He didn't want to talk to his younger brother, who had his wife and was expecting a child. He loved Al, hell he could wager Al being alive was just another reason he refused to give in to temptation, but he couldn’t talk to him about this. He didn’t want Al to have even an idea of what it felt like to be without the person that completed . . . the fear and the thoughts were enough, Al would be able to decipher anything he said and Ed would keep that darkness within himself as far from his younger brother as he possibly could.

He still remembered all the others' whose lives were lost, how could he forget them? Winry and Havoc, an unlikely and unexpected couple, much like himself and Mustang, the looks on their faces, the realization that they were going to die and then it happening. How could he forget about losing his childhood friend? However, none of the lives of friends and colleagues that were lost bore down on him nearly as much as Roy's death did. Months or years could pass and he knew he would never be able to let it go anymore than he could completely shut out the death of his mom. He still remembered her death, the funeral, her dying words, and even the events of that night vividly. Yes, the pain had lessened with time and he wasn't paralyzed and guilt driven to correct the mistakes he'd made because he'd corrected them but there was no way of forgetting them. He didn't want to, he used those experiences to learn very hard lessons and he would never forget them for the sake of not making those same mistakes again.

Wasn't he making a fatal mistake now, one that he had learned while together with Roy? This knack he had for keeping everything to himself and not wanting to come off as weak being his main reasoning had nearly gotten both of them killed. Enemies were like a virus, once you made one they just kept coming back and getting worse every time. He'd made enemies in high places throughout his years in the military just as Mustang had and instinct told him that only one of their enemies would have been able to bring Father back. Someone had initiated what had happened and Ed couldn’t figure out who, how, or why when he was so overwhelmed with grief, loss, and guilt. 

******

Al always woke just before dawn, always right as Edward would finally return from his self-imposed solitude outside at a cliff’s edge. This morning was no different and the younger Elric eased out of the bed he shared with his fiancé to go through his usual motions to prepare for the long day ahead. As was typical he saw his brother in the hallway just before the elder retreated to his room and shut everyone away again. Those usually vibrant and bright eyes were dulled and the weariness was like a shroud around the grieving man. Al watched silently, always silent in the morning, and always questioned whether his elder brother even recognized him. Al waits for his brother to turn away and close himself into his room before he lets out a heavy sigh feeling his heart break a little for every time his brother continues his silence and this atypical behavior. 

Turning away to make his way down the short hallway, across the living area, and into the kitchen Al wishes there was something he could do for his brother. He’ll have to go into town today to grab some more groceries and a few other things and for now settles with starting the coffee going and figuring out what to fix for breakfast. Mei will be up soon, either because her bladder with be assaulted by the unborn child growing within or because of hunger. They have enough fixings for a hot breakfast and so he sets to fixing that while his mind wanders over how life has been since they settled into this new country far from home. 

The kitchen was small; the stove was across from the sink tucked along the wall to the right of the entryway. They had cabinets to the left and right of the sink, two cabinets with a counter below that had drawers, the sink sat below a small window that allowed light to come into the kitchen. Across from the sink sat a stove and over combination, something he’d learned how to make himself from Winry and was forever grateful for. It was wide enough for four burners and the oven could fit a dish and a desert if needed with its two racks. The icebox, another helpful improved construct of Winry’s genius he’d remembered, held all the things that needed to be stored cold. Electricity was a blessing especially with the icebox, a freezer, small but efficient, made up the top section and the icebox stored things that did not need to be frozen in the bottom half. Everything in the house was either pale or of natural coloring; the dining table was large enough to seat four and was a pale oak color with chairs that had cushions because the wood was hard for Mei to sit on for long periods of time. The living room was cozy with a soft couch the color of sand, a loveseat of the same color positioned catty cornered to the couch with a coffee table the same color as the dining room table. They had a fireplace that they rarely used unless absolutely necessary simply because of the risk of what it might do to Ed. 

The bedrooms were simple and bare; with all the traveling they had done, they had not accumulated much in the way of materialistic items. Al had gotten a queen for him and Mei to share and had bought more than enough blankets and sheets to keep them warm during the cold weather. Ed had not offered any opinion in the way of furniture and seemed content to have a simple full sized bed, a dresser Al had fixed up and painted for him, and a small desk. Al had built bookshelves that he’d placed along the wall furthest from the fireplace where he store whatever books he, Ed, and Mei had gathered as they traveled. Ed didn’t have any really and what little he did have were more about the memories than being of any sustenance as their typical library consisted of. Ed had forgone trying to do alchemy or even bothering to study, research, or speak of it. Mei had quietly told Al that the reason Edward was unable to perform alchemy had more to do with a block in his energy than any kind of inability to do alchemy. Al had kept that information to himself because he feared what his older brother would do if he knew he could still use alchemy . . . he’d been so determined to demand answers shortly after what happened and Al could not stand the idea of his brother going before the gate and being torn apart or stolen from him. It was selfish but Al told himself it was necessary because his brother was too unstable to listen to reason if he listened at all. 

It’s been months and they had to settle somewhere due to Mei, she was in the third trimester now and traveling was too risky. He’d grown fond of this small town; most of the people in town lived on pieces of property spread out for miles, much like in Resembool. The townspeople were kind and friendly and seemed to think his elder brother a figment of his imagination. He had learned how to farm, keep a garden, and was considering keeping his own animals when he managed to save enough money to buy livestock. He was only considering it because the price of meat was a volatile thing at times when droughts and hard times fell on the small town. He didn’t think it would be a good idea, as he couldn’t picture himself being capable of killing animals just to eat. If he could get Ed to do more than simply exist, somehow snap him out of his current state and be in the present . . . well Ed could handle the animals.

He smiled softly as he thought of going into town, he would get to interact with others and see for himself that life did continue even after . . . it was something he clung to, seeing people carrying on with their lives and children laughing and playing. His country, his own world had been utterly ripped away and destroyed but he clung to the fact that life continued elsewhere, that Mei had survived and their child would soon be born. 

He knew Ed would never talk to him if he would ever talk to _anyone_ about what he was going through. It was aggravating and left him feeling helpless, but his brother had always had a very strong protective streak and no matter how old either of them got that nature would never change. Al recalls how relieved he’d felt when Roy had managed to get Ed’s attention because he knew if anyone could finally shoulder the weight of everything Ed carried around with him then it would be the older man who had his own burdens to bear. He’d talked with Riza about the potential between the two months before they had ever acknowledged their growing closeness and she had hoped they would figure things out between them soon. She’d confided in him about how she and Roy would never have worked as a couple, not simply because of their chosen careers but because the weight of their pasts was too similar for either of them to help the other carry. 

Mei wandered into the kitchen by the time Al finished preparing breakfast and had already drank half the pot of coffee. She had a throw blanket tucked around her shoulders as she padded up to him with a soft smile, he returned her smile and leaned down to kiss her before he pulled plates from the cabinet to the right of the sink. She returned his kiss with a soft one of her own and a warm smile before she turned to the icebox to grab the milk of which he’d also have to grab more of and he grabbed a glass for her upon returning from placing the plates at the table. She settled in at the table after grabbing forks for both of them while he fixed himself another cup of coffee leaving enough room for a splash of milk and two spoonfuls of sugar. They ate in relative silence, content as they could be with the heavy weight of Ed’s state hanging in the air. 

After eating, Mei returned to their shared room to gather things for her to wash up in the bathroom at the end of the hallway while Al busied himself with cleaning up after breakfast. He would take time to wash up and they would most likely relax until the sun rose more fully in the sky and then he would prepare to head into town. Mei normally accompanied him into town but it did depend on her mood and how she was feeling each day. She still seemed a bit tired when they had eaten breakfast together so he would try to convince her to stay home and rest. Sure enough, once she washed up and he followed afterwards and got ready to head into town she seemed content to curl up on the couch wrapped in a blanket reading a book. He kissed her on the forehead and jotted down her additions to his list of things to get from town before he grabbed his wallet, keys, and his thinner jacket to combat the chill in the air. She told him to be careful and not to forget they would need things for the baby eventually. He chuckled warmly and said he would talk to people in town about that and see if he could get someone to help him carry things home. 

Al had let himself become paranoid from the years traveling and living in Central. The house was locked up tight behind him as he set off down the hill and to the main dirt road that would lead into town. Their house sat the top of a hill that was not visible from town as most of the land around them was nothing but hills and plains tucked into the bottom of hills. Most people built their homes on hills to counteract the floods of rain during the spring and summer and the snow during the winter. Their chosen house belonged to a small family that had left some years ago seeking to live in a city with the dream of finding a better education for their children. Al did worry about raising his daughter or son in a small town considering the prejudice and taunting that came with growing up in a small town but he could think about that later on. It usually took about ten minutes of walking down a hill headed northeast to reach the road and when he reached it Al was surprised to see a familiar blond haired man coming down the road south of where he had reached the road. 

Al smiled at the other man as he waved and called out to him before the other blond jogged up to him to join him. The other man was not from this town having come here only a year or two ago according to him. However, he was friendly, charismatic, polite, and generally pleasant company. He chose to wear dark blue jeans and a yellow shirt with a black jacket thrown over it today, typically the other man was always wearing a bright shirt, which suited him considering his usual jovial and sunny disposition. There was something about his grin today, almost as though something was on his mind and Al would wait until they exchanged pleasantries before he asked the other what was going on. 

“Going into town pretty early today?”

“Yes, much as you are,” Al answered with a grin as they walked along the dirt road. This road was three miles from where Al had met the road at the bottom of the hill where his house was. Al knew that the other, Tidus he believed, lived half a mile further southwest from town. Al often hoped that the other man would find some way to approach Ed or talk to him since he was essentially their neighbor but he doubted the other even believed his elder brother existed. Most of the people in town thought he was a tragically devastated young man who talked of an older brother that he had lost. Sadly, it did often feel as though Ed had did that fateful day even though he was physically alive. 

Their silence was comfortable as Al let his thoughts wander for a short while but Tidus was never one to tolerate silence very well as far as the younger Elric could tell. Sure enough, only a minute or two had passed before the other broke the silence with a statement that stopped Al in his tracks. 

“So I met your brother, thought he was a figment of your imagination,” the other said casually, or what Al could tell was meant to be casual but actually came out nervous and uncertain almost as though Tidus expected him to be angry.

“Oh?” Al turned to regard the other in the morning sun and saw the swirling thoughts and emotions burning in Tidus’ unusual blue eyes. All the years he’d spent watching others had taught Al to read other people fairly accurately and Tidus was definitely not the hardest person to read. Al saw genuine curiosity, a bit of understanding and sympathy, and more importantly kindness in those cerulean eyes. 

“Does he always do that,” Tidus asked softly and Al nodded. He had no idea how much to tell the other man because he didn’t know whether or not Ed would want the other man to know anything. Feeling a bit of resentment and rebelliousness mixing with his own protectiveness and need to do something, anything, to help his brother return to the land of the living he decided then and there that he was going to use Tidus’s curiosity to convince the man that his brother needed a friend. Even if Ed was angered by him interfering, it would be better than his non-reaction to everything around him. It took Al only a few seconds of thought to make his decision about whether or not to include Tidus into their lives. What made his hesitation disappear had more to do with the fact that he knew Tidus did not have family in this town and seemed to be more or less alone in this country; they could all benefit from this friendship. 

“Every night, with the exception of during the winter nights. He typically hibernates during the winter with a bottle of scotch and one of his many journals. He sleeps through the morning, wakes in the afternoon where I have to force him to eat something, wash up, and then he retreats to his room until nightfall.”

“That’s hardly healthy,” Tidus commented casually even though his eyes looked stormy with familiarity and something Al can’t put a name to yet. Al turns away and starts down the road, he wants to try to get to town soon and be able to see his brother before he holes away into his room for the rest of the day after he wakes up. Tidus takes the hint and falls into step next to him and that’s when Al notices something peculiar about the other man. Tidus looks relaxed but he’s always watching everything around them and it reminds Al strongly of Havoc and his own brother telling Al that Tidus is used to defending himself and traveling on his own or possibly with others. 

“How did you meet Ed, did he say anything to you?” Al glances at the other to gauge his reaction to the question and sees the brief show of mild irritation in the other’s expression. 

“He was standing on the edge of the cliff and was so close to the edge it made me think he was going to jump off or somethin’. I started talking to him but he didn’t reply to anything I said other than to look at me as if I was the crazy one. It did seem like he acknowledged I was there so I guess that’s something.”

Al chuckles despite how depressing Ed’s state of mind is and has been for a while and comments with, “That sounds like him. He doesn’t talk much unless he’s yelling and arguing with me or Mei about something, even that much takes needling and pestering however.”

“Huh, sounds like someone I used to know,” Tidus says with a bit of melancholy in his voice and then he puts his hands in his pockets and grins to break the mood. He jogs ahead of Al, pulls his hands out of his pockets to interlace his hands behind his head, and walks backwards with a grin firmly in place. He then says, “Have you ever followed him when he stands out there by himself?”

“I used to but it always escalated into him walking away, he doesn’t want me near when he’s in that kind of a mood and he makes that clear every time I follow him.”

“Huh, is that usual between brothers or something?”

“I guess it is, Ed’s always tried to protect me from . . . well everything really,” Al answers honestly without elaborating on all the things Ed had kept from him or tried to dim down over the years. Al can’t help but to appreciate Tidus’s attempt to keep things light with his grin and his act of playing the joking fool. Al isn’t fooled in the least but appreciates the gesture nonetheless. 

“How long have lived in this town anyway,” Al asks of the other. 

Tidus shrugs at the question and says, “Almost two years I guess, you’ve been here a few months or so, right?”

“Or so, my fiancé can’t travel long distances at the moment so we had to stop for a while. We may stick around if Brother doesn’t protest staying in one place after the baby is born.”

“Oh! That’s right! Congratulations on soon becoming a father, that’s great!” Al could hear and see the genuine joy and happiness in the other but he also saw a shadow or loss buried beneath it and was curious about this man’s story. Perhaps he was correct in his prediction that befriending the other man could do more than possibly help Ed. He smiled with all the pride and love he felt at the congratulations and replied, “Thank you, I’m looking forward to becoming a father.”

Tidus stopped walking backwards and returned to walking at his side pushing his hands into his pockets once more. The hands in the pockets seemed habitual so whatever the other’s back-story he was definitely not military, those in the military were broken of the habit to put their hands in their pockets early on in the service years. Al did know that the other could handle himself in a fight, he could tell from the way he moved and his alertness of what was going on around him. It was a good thing that Tidus did not seem to be unable to handle himself because even being friends with any Elric could prove to put someone into some unconventional situations. 

“So . . . I bet you have a lot of questions you want to ask since I’m gettin’ that you may be consider actually encouraging my interacting with your brother.” Tidus kept his tone light and his accent was indefinable to Al, he did not recognize where it stemmed from and that told him that Tidus was from somewhere that Al had never traveled. It was not a small town country accent like what he and Ed had when they were upset or angry, it was slang from what he could tell but in a way that reminded Al of those who live in the city. 

“I’m sure I can think of a few to start off with, perhaps you can join us for dinner this evening to answer others I may have,” Al commented casually. Tidus looked nervous briefly but then he grinned and nodded, “Sure, I’d love to.”

They had walked about half a mile at this point and had two and half more to go considering their casual pace. The two exchanged questions and answers that were more or less general snatches of knowledge. Al had never taken the time to get to know the other as they rarely saw each other for longer than in passing through town. He learned as they walked and talked that Tidus was an only child, he was from one of the northern countries, he had once been a star athlete but tired of that and was traveling with a group of people he counted as family but who had scattered at the end of their journey. Al didn’t press for details, not yet, he may or may not learn the exact story of Tidus’s travels but was in no rush to press the other. Al told Tidus that he and Ed had traveled since they were young and had grown up in a small country town. They were from a country in the east but he wouldn’t say which country or even the name of their town, Tidus wouldn’t divulge the name of his own homeland so it seemed fair.

Al also learned along their walk that Tidus held some resentment for his father and had lost his mother at a young age but that he’d more or less forgiven his father just before he’d died. Al didn’t comment more than to say that they had more in common than he initially believed. Tidus seemed to catch on and only asked how old he was when he’d lost his parents. Al told him and commented that Ed had resented their father for leaving when they were toddlers but had kind of forgiven him in the end. From there the two of them kept to more lighthearted things.

Al learned Tidus’s favorite color happened to be yellow, a color that represents the team he was once a member of. Al told him his favorite color was actually green although he didn’t think anyone really knew that about him. Tidus adds that he used to love parties and was quite the arrogant jackass before he’d left his hometown. He’d grown up while traveling because of all the things they’d gone through along the way. Al asked where all of them were only to get a shrug and a comment about how they’d all returned their lives and he’d just kept traveling. He decided to stay here for a while because it was far enough away and close to the ocean, and it was more or less calm here.

By the time they got to town Al knew that Tidus had a past, had traveled for a reason and aimlessly afterwards, and that whatever the other man’s past was that he did feel lonely. Al decided that he would befriend the other regardless of how Ed felt about it. Al also decided that he’d still encourage a friendship between Ed and Tidus considering the two had more in common than Al had originally thought. It also helped that Tidus was keeping his secrets close not out of a need to protect Al but simply because he was guarded which meant to Al that the other man knew loss on a significant level. Al didn’t feel as though Tidus was untrustworthy or didn’t trust easily, his guarded nature seemed to be from loss and not betrayal, there was always a bitter undercurrent to being guarded when one was betrayed. Al knew that from his own experiences and from the experiences he and Ed had both been through. Secrets were a necessity for them for most of their lives and it seemed as though they may have been for Tidus but he didn’t have enough information to know if that was true or not. 

They went their separate ways once they reached town and it was definitely midmorning now. Tidus asked what time he’d like him to come for dinner and when, Al confirmed that he meant tonight and an hour before sundown would be fine. Al set to getting his shopping done and asking around town for furniture and things for his unborn child. It proved to occupy his time as he was guided to talk to many different people about all the things a newborn would need, where to get them, and how to transport them from town to his home three miles out of town. By the time he had everything he’d come to town for and had talked to everyone about all the things they’d need it was late afternoon and he’d have to get a move on if he wanted to make it home before the usual dinner time. He’d also learned that Tidus had come to this town nearly two years ago and that he had his moments of being social, never turned down odd jobs or chances to help out with anything, was genuinely liked by nearly everyone, and didn’t seem to be interested in dating anyone in town which was something Al hadn’t asked about. 

Additionally, Tidus had told everyone in town that he was from up north, didn’t have any family, would help anyway he could to help pay for room and board and often took jobs to escort people into town or to the city if needed. Al had asked only about where Tidus lived and learned the other man lived in a rundown house that was more of a shack than a house to live in but that he never seemed to mind. Al had an idea about how to change that and had spoken to a carpenter about what it would take to fix up the house where Tidus lived. Al earned what money he could by repairing things, coming and going into town a few times a week to help with anything he could. 

This trip into town had also presented an option when the schoolhouse teacher had approached him with an offer to teach. They’d like to split up the younger children from the older ones to avoid bullying and allow the older children to learn more advanced things but she was so used to teaching them all together that she was at a loss for who could possibly teach the older children. Al said he would think about it and get back to her after speaking to his fiancé and they could go from there, she had seemed so hopeful and grateful that Al knew he’d end up taking the offer within a few months. Perhaps he and Mei could raise their child in this town; maybe Al could convince Ed to teach or to at least do something. Al was holding out hope that Tidus would be able to get Ed’s attention somehow or that when Mei and Al welcomed their child into the world that Ed would have some kind of reaction and return to them. He walked briskly out of town saying his farewells and made his way home looking forward to having company over for dinner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't certain if I would ever continue this piece but RL more less required it for venting purposes I guess.

**Author's Note:**

> This story is filed under Unfinished Works in my documents because I've no idea whether I will continue it or leave it alone. I was most definitely in one of my dark moods when I wrote this but regardless I wrote it anyway. This story was also a bit of a challenge to myself, a pairing I've considered (mostly as a result of a very large scale and yet to be published project where these two and many other characters are present) but had yet to write. Maybe I'll get around to posting that large scale project of mine . . .


End file.
